This book reassesses performance legitimacy in the context of statebuilding and identifies the paradox between state institution building and state legitimacy by looking at the interplay between state legitimacy and leaders’ legitimacy The author reviews the significant weaknesses associated with the current measures of state legitimacy and uses this to demonstrate the incompatibility of these measurements with the reality faced by conflict and post-conflict countries. The author uses the Performance Legitimacy Theory of Transition framework to demonstrate the potential legitimacy paths that post-conflict countries can embark on and proposes a new approach for building state legitimacy in post-conflict countries. The author also introduces new indicators to measure performance legitimacy that also reflect its non-exclusive nature. Essential reading for students and researchers of Peace and Conflict Studies and especially of post-conflict development, peacebuilding, statebuilding, intervention, and democracy promotion. Also accessible to policy makers.

The right to self-determination has played a crucial role in the process of assisting oppressed people to put an end to colonial domination. Outside of the decolonization context, however, its relevance and application has constantly been challenged and debated. This book examines the role played by self-determination in international law with regard to post-conflict state building. It discusses the question of whether self-determination protects local populations from the intervention of international state-builders in domestic affairs. With a focus on the right as it applies to the people of an independent state, it explores how self-determination concerns that arise in the post-conflict period play out in relation to the reconstruction process. The book analyses the situation in Somalia as a means of drawing out the impact and significance of the legal principle of self-determination in the process of rebuilding post-conflict institutions. In so doing, it seeks to highlight how the relevance of self-determination is often overlooked in this context.

This volume explores questions of rebuilding governance in post-conflict societies from an interdisciplinary perspective, focusing on three interconnected gaps that arise in fragile states: deficits in legitimacy, effectiveness, and security.

This book investigates two critical political science domains: international negotiation processes and the establishment of good governance practices, using real-world examples. The author’s observations, analyses, and recommendations provide a unique blend of researcher and practitioner experiences that were implemented in conjunction with government authorities, businesses, the media, and citizen groups in over 40 countries. The book examines negotiation process dynamics from several perspectives: the inclusion of new actors; the impact of psychology, creativity, and values; the significance of post-agreement negotiations; and how negotiations that resolve civil wars need to incorporate explicit good governance provisions. From the governance perspective, the book analyzes the age-old problem of corruption, which is often a major factor responsible for bad governance practices, economic dysfunction, and widespread poverty. It explores the importance of strengthening citizen advocacy for reforms, designing and implementing anti-corruption strategies for fragile states, customizing anti-corruption strategies through targeted risk assessments, and deconstructing the negotiation give-and-take in corrupt transactions to reduce their impact. Each chapter incorporates the author’s practitioner experiences with his research contributions, along with examples of events he experienced when implementing programs around the world. This unique volume will be used in university courses on international negotiation, conflict resolution, governance practices, international development, and comparative politics, as well as providing a useful resource for researchers, policymakers, practitioners, NGOs, donor organizations, and grant-giving organizations.

Master's Thesis from the year 2020 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Topic: International relations, grade: 110/110 cum laude, University of Pavia, language: English, abstract: This thesis focuses on the role that external actors play in rebuilding one crucial issue that is at stake in these contexts, which is the legitimacy of post conflict political systems. The analysis will take into account the strategies and programs implemented by external forces specifically by intervening in three key areas: transitional governments, constitution-building processes and elections. The case study analyzed in this thesis is the Afghan one, particularly complex but fundamental to understand the strategies that these actors adopt in such contexts, and the results that can be achieved in countries that recover from conflict. After providing a theoretical framework concerning democratization and its features in war-torn countries, the analysis of the Afghan case will take into account the three areas mentioned above in order to evaluate the impact of external actors in rebuilding legitimacy in the country. Historically, democratization processes have always attracted the attention of scholars and practitioners. However, one case of particular relevance, especially starting from the end of the Cold War, has attracted increasing attention, that is the one of countries that went through violent conflict and start their transition to democracy and peace from a situation of violence and instability. In such scenarios, often external actors, notably the United Nations, intervene with the aim of supporting the transition towards democratic and peaceful assets. However, the outcomes of these interventions are often mixed.

Countries emerging from civil war or protracted violence often face the daunting challenge of rebuilding their economy while simultaneously creating the political and social conditions for a stable peace. The implicit assumption in the international community that rapid political democratisation along with economic liberalisation holds the key to sustainable peace is belied by the experiences of countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan. Often, the challenges of post-conflict reconstruction revolve around the timing and sequencing of different reform that may have contradictory implications. Drawing on a range of thematic studies and empirical cases, this book examines how post-conflict reconstruction policies can be better sequenced in order to promote sustainable peace. The book provides evidence that many reforms that are often thought to be imperative in post-conflict societies may be better considered as long-term objectives, and that the immediate imperative for such societies should be 'people-centred' policies.

The trend for international engagement in post-conflict reconstruction has produced a host of best-practice postulates on topics such as local involvement in decision-making, accountability for past atrocities, sensitivity to context, and the construction of democratic institutions of governance. International law has potential relevance for many of these themes, yet the question of how the implementation of best-practice policy recommendations might be affected by international law remains under-examined. This book offers a fuller understanding of the role of international law in the practice of post-conflict reconstruction. It explores how international legal issues that arise in the post-conflict period relate to a number of strands of the policy debate, including government creation, constitution-making, gender policy, provision of security, justice for past atrocities, rule of law development, economic recovery, returning displaced persons, and responsibilities of international actors. The chapters of the book work to reveal the extent to which international law figures in the policy of internationally enabled post-conflict reconstruction across a range of sectors. They also highlight the scope for international law to be harnessed in a more effective manner from the perspective of the transition to peace and stability. The book lays out a basis for future policy making on post-conflict reconstruction; one that is informed about the international legal parameters, and more aware of how international law can be utilized to promote key objectives.

Much analysis of state building focusses on dissecting specific projects and attempting to identify what has gone ’wrong’ in states such as Afghanistan and Iraq. What draws less attention is what has gone ’right’ in non-interventionist statebuilding projects within 'unrecognised’ states. By examining this model in more depth a more successful model of statebuilding emerges in which the end goal of modern democracy and good governance are more likely to be realized. Indeed 'states-within-states’ such as Somaliland where external intervention in the statebuilding process is largely absent can provide vital new lessons. Somaliland is a functioning democratic political entity in northwestern Somalia which declared its independence from the troubled south in 1991 and then embarked on an ambitious project to create a democratic government and successful state in the post-conflict environment. The leaders and the people of Somaliland have since succeeded not only in maintaining peace and stability, but also in building the institutions of government and the foundations for democracy that have led to a succession of elections, peaceful transfers of power and a consolidation of democratization. The resulting state of Somaliland is widely hailed as a beacon of success within a politically turbulent region and provides a useful framework for successful statebuilding projects throughout the world.

Our world is in urgent need of global answers on subjects such as Big Data, climate change, and the interconnected global economy. This volume tackles those issues and more, with the goal of advancing more democratic modes of decision-making.